Moving Beyond Mia
by Unashamed1
Summary: No slash. After Lily returns from a trip to Genovia, she starts asking questions about her identity, and what it really means to be the, Offical Best Friend of the Future Queen. On Hold.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing you recognize.

**A/N:** Anyone who has something to say, I would appreciate feed back. I'd like to know if you think it was worth posting. What do you like? What could make it better? How does the tone strike you? What do you think the point of it was? (I'm curious as to whether or not it got through). I hope you'll stop by and help me out!

Moving Beyond Mia 

Chapter 1

_May 28__th__, 2005_

_Alright, so I'm sitting at an awareness rally for the Invisible Children of Uganda, and suddenly I can't stop thinking about Mia. You know, it's because of her example that I even started keeping a dairy in the first place. (Diary? No, I think I like, 'journal' better; sounds more collegiate). I have no idea how you do it, but noticed that it did her some good and thought it was worth a try. Since I don't know the etiquette for these things (I'll have to e-mail and ask Mia; being a Princess probably means knowing the etiquette for everything) I guess I'll just have to start talking. _

_After I found out about the Princess bussiness (and had my freak-out…which I'm kind of not proud of now) I did my best to be a supportive best friend, even down to helping her work things out with Nicolas last year. _

It had been a few months since Lily's surprise visit to Genovia; things must have been going well with Nicolas, because she hadn't heard from Mia since then…and she couldn't honestly say that she was unhappy with that.

_I did, however, hear from Queen Clarice last week, which was odd. I didn't think she even had my address, let alone that she would think to write. Maybe we bonded a little, somehow, on my last trip. _Lily suppressed a smile, remembering the moment when Her Highness had come to wake Mia and found a pajama-clad Lily under the covers instead. She didn't want to disrespect the dignity of the Royal Office, or anything, but the look on Clarice's face had been priceless. The sound of someone dropping a table to her left jarred Lily momentarily back to the present, but she wasn't ready to stop writing; something still didn't feel right. Jackson was covering the main table; he would call if he needed her. She shifted in her chair, angled the book in her lap, and focused in again.

_A few days ago, when I realized how little my best friend's silence bothered me, I almost couldn't admit it to myself, let alone anyone else. I mean, what kind of person does that make me? It was tugging at me for a while, but it's not like I had anyone to talk it over with. My roommates hardly know who, 'Mia,' is; Michael wouldn't understand; my mom, I'm sure, would try, even though I doubt she'd know what to say, and my Dad…I love him, but we ran out of things to talk about when I was eight. So, I decided to do what Mia does; pour my heart out into a sheaf of paper. _Lily hated to admit it, but she thought it was working…a little. She paused and took a breath, staring down at the page. Still not sure what she was looking for, Lily blinked to re-focus her eyes and started again with the first thing that came to mind.

"_Lily Moscovitz, Official Best Friend of future Queen; I don't like you." That was how I introduced myself to Nicolas, the day that Mia had to do her Review of the Royal Guar; then I did it again when, 'Captain Kip Kelly' (what kind of a name is that?) started annoying me: "What if we all talked like that? 'Lily Moscovitz, Best Friend of Princess Mia, riding in the 'Stang.'" I just realized that I did that. _In fact, as much as she hated to admit it to herself, sometimes she still did. _When did my identity get wrapped up with Mia's? I mean, I love her, but somewhere along the line I think I settled into the role of her side-kick. _Lily felt older memories stirring up in the back of her mind. She was still trying to decide if she wanted to see them as she shook out her wrist to continue on.

_I just realized the really odd thing about Mia going AWAL lately; it means that there's nothing in her life that she wants to talk to me about. When we were just plain kids, not, "Lily and the Princess," we lived as total equals; we told each other everything. In fact, that was what made the whole Princess revelation so hard on me. _Lily suppressed a smile as she remembered her own voice, _'…Friends tell. This is _your _friendship Charm…I'm taking it off, and it's going in the dirt.' _

_Thankfully, Mia got over my initial reaction to …the news. It took me a whileto come to terms with it, but I was even more optimistic than she was in the end. She thought it was a nightmare. I call it a miracle. _

Lily looked up from the page at the dozen or so people around her, scrambling from table to table, doing everything but turning cartwheels in the grass to get the attention of passing students, while pictures of child-soldiers stared out from the massive bulletin boards behind them. _Note to self, _Lily wrote quickly, _tell Mia about the Forgotten Children. Maybe she can schedule a meeting with a Ugandan ambassador, or a least do some major awareness-raising in Genovia; maybe even do an international TV thing. _

Lily felt her heart-rate raise as the flooded her imaginationThen her hand stopped mid-letter as the sound of her own words pushed up from the back of her mind again. She moved down a line and scribbled what she could catch of the memory. "_Wanting to rock the world, but having zip power, like me…that's a nightmare." _ She paused for just a moment, then started again with new purpose. _I don't envy Mia. Not her privilege, at least. What would I do with a closet the size of some people's back yards and a dozen rings that could feed ten thousand people each…Well, come to think of it I'd probably sell them, but that's not the point. I don't envy Mia for the _perks _of being a Princess, and I certainly don't envy her the headaches. What I envy is the power. _

Lily stopped, took a breath, and stared at the page, not sure how she felt about what she saw. _Well, I guess it's just as effective to have the ear of influence as to be influence yourself. It gets the same work done, as long as you're persuasive enough. _But wasn't that what she'd been doing for the last seven years? Lily felt something in her stomach squirm as she wondered, for the first time, if that identity was good enough anymore.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

"_Wanting to rock the world and having zip power, like me? That's a nightmare."_

Lily was alone in the dorm for the night, and she took the opportunity to embrace the concept of pajama pants and pony-tailed hair. Being comfortable meant not having to think too much, and right now, that was what she needed. The rally had been a modest success, but they would try again tomorrow…they would always try again tomorrow. Sometimes, she wondered if her desire to change the world would overwhelm her someday. _No, _she told herself, looking herself in the eye in the bathroom mirror, _stop-no more of that for tonight, remember? _She was tired enough, and it was time to let it go.

She told herself to turn some music on, or pull out that DVD that her roommates had brought home from Christmas break that she'd seen eight times already. (She firmly believed that for every viewing beyond the third of the same movie, the human IQ went down eighteen points. No scientific data as of yet, but she was thinking of getting some of her friends in the Social Sciences and Psychology departments to help change that). She was halfway to the entertainment center when she felt a tugging at the back of her brain, coupled with a knot in her stomach. Without giving herself time to talk herself out of it, she gave in and went for the journal again.

_May 30__th__, 2005_

_I must not be done yet, because this is the fourth time in three days that something has told me to pick up this book. It's just as well that I haven't heard from anyone back home, especially Mia, since I'm still trying to figure out this power-envy situation. It's a strange thing with us, I guess. Most girls would kill to be Princesses. I never thought about it much, myself-well, maybe when I was six-but after watching Mia do it for the last few years, I know for a fact that all those other girls could have it; I, Lily Moscovitz, would hate my best friend's job. _

_Yes, it's stressful, but Mia and I both know how the handle stress. Private school does that for you. It's the living- in- a- fish-bowel thing that's not worth it-and I have a feeling that only royals really know how bad that is. Celebrities don't count when it comes to fish bowel trouble; they've worked to hard for it. Sometimes they even build careers around it, and then complain when they get it. People like Mia don't have as much choice; they've, 'never been normal; they were born royal.'(Mia told me that this was her grandmother's come-back when her mom tried to explain, way back in the beginning, that Mia was just a, "normal kid"). Right. She'd never be normal again. _

Lily settled back on her pillows, journal in her lap and pen in hand. The clock read 9:00, but she had a feeling that the tugging wasn't going to let her sleep, even if she wanted to. She tried to ignore the humming ceiling light down the hall and focused on her memories.

_I have no idea why, but that day on the bleachers keeps coming back to me-the list of reasons I gave Mia _not _to be a Princess. That was back when I thought that you could just refuse it-like a job offer or a recruitment from the army. But the longer I know the new Mia, watch her work, see the way she deals with people, all the new..._poise_ she has…I understand that this isn't just a job. It's a life. It's the life you chose-or get born into-when you become a member of a Royal family. I wonder what it's like to have the world's eyes literally on you. _She felt something in the bottom of her stomach sink as she tried to picture it. Never being allowed to, 'lose it,' at your brother when he's being irritating, or having your picture taken by total strangers for no good reason except who you are. Always having to look your best-she glanced down at herself-just in case the press was watching.

Feeling a knot start to grow in her neck, but noticing that the one in her stomach was residing, Lily glanced back up at the clock. She was starting to lose the last of her energy; she shook her head a little and blocked out everything but the page in front of her.

_I told Mia that her being a Princess was a miracle, but I think I might've been wrong. Or maybe, only half-right. My best friend is now in a position to change the world; a position she pays dearly for, but has the grace and strength to handle. I'm also in a position to change the world, but I think mine is better: I have the guts to try, the brains to plan, and the persistence to get people like Mia to listen. Thanks to her, I have the ear of power. And I don't have to pay for it with a piece of my soul. _

She took a breath and let the pen hover over the page, and realized that the buzzing in her soul and tugging at her brain was gone. Her mind moving more slowly this time, she smiled a little and began again with calm, contemplative purpose.

_The next time Mia comes for a visit, I'm gong to take her out; do something fun and crazy and a little ridiculous like we used to. I think someone in her position needs friends that can help her forget the pressure every now and then. But maybe I won't tell her I feel a little bad for her; that I'm tossing out prayers for strength for her every now and then. I love my best friend. So, maybe I won't tell her that I just realized that I'm the one with the miracle. _


	3. Chapter 3

A\N: A special thank you to "Smiley 0531" (Dani) and "Naseka" for suggesting that I add to this work. I'm afraid you'll be getting a fourth chapter for your trouble. General note to all: reviews both encouraging and appreciated.

Chapter 3

_June 5__th__, 2005 ( 25,000 feet in the air.)_

_If I hadn't opened my e-mail before leaving, I wouldn't have had this decision to make. I was packing when the message came in. __Packing-__ I was almost out of there. _

Lily leaned back in her seat, trying to both write and avoid jostling the woman in the business suite next to her. If Mia had been there, she would have whispered some comment about the perils of being a South Paw in a right-handed world; they would've bantered for a while until the people in the surrounding seats started looking at them like they were crazy. Lily smiled a little as she stared down at the page. She'd had several moments of missing her best friend in the last few months, but this was one of the more severe.

_Queen of Genovia or not, Mia would definitely be shooting quips with me across the arm rest right now-maybe that's why I need to go; to remind her that no matter how many national incidents she has to diffuse or impossible MP's she gets to deal with, she can always be her old self with me._

Lily stifled a yawn and readjusted in her seat, pretending she didn't see the look her neighbor to the left was giving her. Her stomach squirmed as she tried to focus on the page in the overhead light. She had thought about ignoring Mia's e-mail, begging her to spend some time in Genovia over the summer, and she didn't even know why. In the end she'd called her parents, let them know she wouldn't be home for another few weeks, and gotten on a plane with the ticket that Mia had sent to her. In a few hours, she would be with Mia, Clarisse, and Joe again; she'd be thinking about how best to make small talk with Nicolas and getting the right plug for her laptop…and while she was busy doing all that, maybe the little knot growing in the base of her stomach would go away.

_June 8__th__, 2005 (Somewhere in the Palace…I think) _

_I literally lost my way ten minutes ago. Then I wandered around until I found some place pleasant, and I've been sitting in a dark purple bedroom with a view of the stone chapel-I really need to find my good camera and take some up-close shots of those gargoyles. Anyhow, my first day back in Genovia, I slept. All day. I didn't even see Mia, but when she found out I was here, she rushed the end of a meeting with Parliament to come and find me. (Needless to say, this made me feel like I really needed to earn that attention.) She's working out a border issue with a French ambassador at the moment, but she made me promise to have lunch with her and Nicolas after I'd recovered from my jet-lag. I hope she doesn't mind if that lunch happens sometime in late July. _

Lily dropped her journal back into her purse as a maid cracked open the door.

"Excuse me, Miss Lily?" Lily turned to face the door, shifting a little as the title sunk in. "Her Majesty is ready to see you now."

"But I just saw Clar…" Lily stopped and shook her head. She was still getting used to Mia's new title. "Of course. Where is she?"

The maid opened her mouth, and then changed her mind and stepped behind the door. Lily jumped to her feet as Mia stumbled over the carpet on her way in, opening her arms in Lily's direction.

"I am so sorry! Lord Darby was waiting outside the door to hit me with plans for a new water bill right after my meeting." Lily smiled over Mia's shoulder and caught the smell of lilacs from her jacket.

"What's the use of being Queen if you can't tell people when they're bugging you and where they can get off?" Mia laughed and squeezed a little harder before letting go.

"That's why I need you around here. You haven't changed." Lily chose to ignore the fresh knot forming in her stomach and let Mia keep talking. "Are you up for lunch? I postponed a publicity thing so we could have a smaller party."

"Stop making me feel guilty," Lily was only half-joking as she settled across from Mia on a window seat.

"Don't even pretend to go there," Mia fought a smile and tried to look stern. "You are more than worth it, and you know it. I haven't seen you in-"

"Way too long." Lily finished for her. Mia nodded and leaned forward a little; Lily noticed for the first time that her hair was free…but still straight. Of course, she had learned to live with this a while ago. Out of nowhere, a history class room full of teenaged attitude and rancid insecurity came back to her. _"Well, I think it rocks, and you know what? Voltaire- hair. I would _personally, _like to learn about Voltaire."_

"Lily…hey-Lily. Did I loose you? Jet lag get to you again?"

"Huh? No, no jet lag; sorry." Lily watched Mia sit back against the window and noticed her face. "Why are you smirking?"

"Why were you smiling?"

Lily lifted an eyebrow and tried not to smile.

"No matter what they teach you in rhetoric, a question is not a satisfactory answer. So, once again, why are you smirking?"

"Because you were smiling."

"We could be here all day, you know." Mia laughed and turned to the maids at the door.

"Hello, Ladies." The girls smiled at her, and Lily remembered when Mia would've said, "Hey, girls," and offered each of them a jolly rancher. Same tone, different Mia. "Speaking of being here all day," Mia turned back to Lily as the maids worked quietly next to them. "I was thinking we'd all have lunch inside-this room ok?…Oh, I never let you answer before, did I? Are you up for that much company right now?"

"A half a cup of something caffeine-related and I should be, absolutely." Mia laughed and then smiled at the maids, motioning for them to bring in a loaded cart and cherry wood table from the hallway.

"You want me to help get the chairs?" The offer was out of her mouth before Lily realized that it probably violated protocol; was the Queen's Best Friend allowed to carry chairs?

"The boys offered to bring them up," Mia answered without looking at her as she got up to help Brigeta with a wheel that had snagged on the rug. The maid watched Mia kneel in her pink Channel suit and struggle to re-align the wheel, torn between the dangers of contradicting Her Majesty and the utter impropriety of allowing the Queen of Genovia to kneel and fix a rug herself. Lily watched her fret and wondered why she wasn't more used to Mia by now.

"I hope you don't mind that it won't be just us," Mia lifted up the wheel long enough to smooth the rug. Lily hoped that Mia couldn't hear her trying not to laugh as she watched Brigit dive for the crystal butter dish sliding toward the floor. "But Andrew has been asking me to meet his cousin, and they're both in the country this week." Mia looked up from the floor as Lily swallowed a smile.

"Not at all. I can help check him out for you-make sure he's not angling for any royal handouts." Lily eyed a crystal glass that was shaking on its tray.

"Actually, I'm not sure I'd mind-it sounds like he does some good work," Mia half-smiled as she watched Lily and Brigeta settle the cart next to the table. Now it was Lily's turn to smirk.

"Ok, now I know I need to be here-you need me to keep you from being swallowed by your own philanthropist's streak. So, what's this guy's game- classical musician? Filmmaker? Modern artist?"

"I do not need to be protected from my own generosity." For a moment, the crisp tone reminded Lily of the old Mia. "And no, actually, he's not really the artsy type. His stuff is more hands-on." Mia avoided her eyes as Lily's left eyebrow shot up.

"Care to elaborate?"

"How's your work with, _Invisible Children_?" Getting anyone's attention?"

"Not as many as I'd like," Lily answered, studying her. "Mia-"

"Would you like to take a bath before lunch? We still don't have real showers here, but I could have the girls maneuver the claw-foot on the 3rd floor for you."

"No need," Lily answered slowly, watching Her Majesty as she pulled a tiny silver phone out of her tailored coat pocket. "I think I remember how it's done." Lily left the room, glancing behind her as Mia tried to get Nicolas on his cell phone.


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer:** Nothing, and no one, you recognize is mine. (They all belong to either Cabot or the screenwriters that adapted her work).

**A\N:** Thank you to Smiley, and any others who were waiting for this chapter (I'm flattered by the alters.) I'm sorry about that wait. I hope you enjoy-and comment.

Chapter 4

Lily looked down at the half-eaten chicken breast on her plate, letting the clicks and pings of glass and silverware surround her, and tried to pay attention to the small talk in the cocoon of white noise. She took a slow breath and noticed the tension in her muscles. Even as the sunlight on her back and Mia's polite, smiling chatter started to relax her, something kept her alert. Every so often, she looked up at Andrew's cousin, watching his gentle smile and half-listening to the quiet chatter between him and Nicolas.

Having dark blue right next to his face just accentuated how fare he was. He seemed nice enough, and Lily had to admit that black hair and dark brown eyes against that skin was hard to take your eyes off of. Again, she was surprised that his, "work," had nothing to do with the arts. If he wasn't a visual artist himself, he should've at least been a subject for one.

"Andrew tells me that you have humanitarian leanings," Mia was using the Royal Genteel voice. Lily looked up and saw Mia focus a polite smile on the visitor, realizing that it had been a while since anyone had addressed him by name. _Why didn't I repeat his name back?_ She kicked herself inwardly for forgetting her favorite memory trick. Lily turned her attention to him, trying desperately to remember his name, as he answered.

"Well, yes," his accent was softer than Andrews, deliberate and quiet. "You could call it that; but really, that term isn't quite inclusive enough for what we do. My friends and I try to provide emotional and spiritual comfort to those we help, as well as economic and physical. That's the main reason why we started our little organization; we believe that without the former, offering the latter is almost cruel. We found each other among like-minded people looking for ways to offer all four." He looked down at his plate and cut a piece of chicken away from the rest, but didn't move it to his mouth.

"Andrew didn't give me the details," Mia pressed, smiling a little. "What does your group work with?"

Lily watched him shift in his chair and half-smile as his eyes flickered up toward Mia.

"Forgive me, your Majesty. As much as I would love to discuss it, I'm afraid it would be…less-than-appropriate meal conversation."

"Don't worry about that," Mia's formal tone was beginning to relax. "You won't offend anyone here. Our Lily is involved in aid work, too."

He looked over at Lily with raised eyebrows.

"I'm not working in humanitarian aid officially," she scooted forward to the edge of her chair, trying to recover from the jarring experience of suddenly shifting roles from the observer to the observed. She would have a word with Mia for that little side-swipe later. "I'm part of a group of students that does volunteer-based work for different organizations; anything from grass-roots awareness campaigns, to on-location help, when we can afford to actually go to the country in question-'afford' being the operative word."

No-Name smiled and touched his cup to his lips before answering. Lily forgot about her food as she tried to focus on his face, still reaching around in her short term memory for that name.

"I understand that." He smiled. "The pay is terrible in this line of work."

Lily chuckled a little, and then paused as an idea struck her. She let her cup sit on her lips a moment longer than it needed to, hoping it would give her time to decide how to approach the subject.

"You look lost in thought," Whoever-He-Was observed. "Did I say something to offend you?"

_Drat._

He studied her with a gentle, sideways look, and she realized that he would probably sit there and wait for her to speak as long she required him to.

"Oh, no," She found his eyes, took a breath, and continued in a tone that she hoped was delicate. "Not at all. I was just wondering…..what draws a member of an aristocratic family to this particular line of work?" She hadn't expected him to smile, but noticed that it didn't offend her much.

"Or any work at all?" He finished. She noticed a little flash in his eyes…but maybe that was just the sunlight reflecting off the crystal.

"Yes," she allowed a brief smile and felt the air around her relax a little.

"Well," No-Name leaned forward, resting his forearms and folded hands on the white table cloth. "I realize that most people in my… position, might make different choices than I have. But when I was fairly young"- Lily observed his features again, and wondered what constituted, "young" to him- "I realized something very simple that changed my life."

Lily's face became momentarily blank, as she tried to decide what she thought of this reply. Her eyes moved over the group, and she noticed that he also had the attention of the rest of the table. Andrew had leaned back in his chair, smiling. Mia looked a little mystified, even as she leaned forward a little and focused her eyes on him. Nicolas was watching the new-comer with a quirked eyebrow.

"Privilege doesn't buy you an excuse to hide from the world." He continued, with the same matter-of-factness that had accompanied the previous pronouncement. "It gives you the responsibility to do something about it."

Lily smiled softly as she answered.

"I would be careful, saying things like that-depending on how you define, 'privilege,' that could have some heavy implications for a lot of people."

No-Name chuckled a little.

"I know; but that's just the thing," he leaned toward Lily, his eyes suddenly more lit. She noticed that his voice had risen, just a little. "The last thing I want to do is present my work as a, 'guilt trip'-that's the American phrase, isn't it?"

Lily nodded.

"I see it as an opportunity for sincere compassion. If people help out of guilt, or because they feel compelled--frankly, I would rather they do nothing at all. Most people treat the word, 'charity,' like a synonym for, 'coercion.' We try to remind them, that it actually means, 'love.' Those of us in what might be called the, 'charity industry'", he spat out the phrase, as though it left a bad taste in his mouth, "would do well to approach it that way."

He paused and looked away, trying to decide if he should continue. After a moment, he found Lily's eyes again. "In fact, I would be brazen enough to say that this is the only place true, 'charity' should come from-- real, free-willed love. That's what I hope my friends and I are offering people --a chance to really love, in a world that's full of such opportunities."

In the silence that followed, Lily watched No Name's face flush.

"So, sorry," he muttered, looking back at Lily. "I get a little verbose about these things sometimes. That's why I need people like Andrew to stop me when I get over-excited."

His cousin smirked at him.

"Actually, I'm afraid I was enjoying watching you too much for that."

No name shot him a slightly dark look.

"Don't give it another thought," Lily answered. "There's no need to apologize for passion. That's one thing, at least, that we can all appreciate."

Mia covered her smile with a napkin as she listened, but she should not have bothered; Lily's eyes had hardly left No-Name since he had opened his mouth.

"I'm actually a little relieved." Mia looked at the hall carpet as she spoke, apparently unaware of Lily's glance from her left. Lily had been forced to pick up her stride twice to avoid being left behind, even though they weren't actually going anywhere specific.

"Why?" Lily tried to make eye contact with her companion and barely caught herself before tripping over her own feet. Mia condescended to slow down briefly.

"I was afraid you might tear that poor guy apart, the way you looked before he came in….but it looks like he made an impression on you."

Lily hated to admit it, but she had been planning on just that.

"He seems like a good enough guy," She answered, and was a little annoyed when she saw Mia's enigmatic smile widen.

"Really? You think he's safe?"

"Probably. At least, I'm pretty sure he's not trying to scam you. Based on that little dissertation, I'm not sure he'll ever ask you for anything-"

"--which will make me want to give it to him." Mia finished.

"Exactly-excellent strategy." Lily observed.

Mia laughed a little, and Lily tried to keep up as her stride increased. "Really, though, I kind of like him-at least so far. He's nothing like I thought he would be…self-absorbed, child of privilege…turns out there's a promise of depth there…" Lily abandoned her thought as something landed in her consciousness. "What do you mean, he made an, 'impression,' on me?"

Mia was still smiling, and still refusing to look at her.

"I'm just saying…everyone else around that table disappeared, didn't we?"

"I don't like what you're implying-," Lily tried to give Mia a stern look, but quickly realized that it was wiser to keep her eyes forward. "I'm not sure what you're implying, but I don't like it."

"Not implying anything," Mia answered, in a tone that suggested that even she wasn't sure she was telling the truth. "Just making an observation."

Lily wasn't ready to leave this line of inquiry, but she had a feeling that she wouldn't get much more out of Mia now.

"Hey, are you training for the Boston Marathon, or something?" Lily panted moments later, when she realized that she'd lost pace with Mia for the third time.

"You know, I need you around me more often," Mia answered, smiling, her eyes still forward. "You're one of the few people in the world who still talk to me like that."

"Like what?"

"Like I'm still regular old Mia."

"You are regular old Mia," Lily answered. "Your Majesty…"

Mia chuckled again; Lily noticed her speeding up as they approached a turn into another hall.

"But seriously…do you have somewhere you need to be?"

"I have…a project, I need to check on." Mia answered. "I promise I'll see you later this afternoon…maybe you can observe our visitor for me some more, since you seem to like him so much."

"Not sure what to think of him yet," Lily answered. "but he definitely warrants further study." After a moment, she continued. "Maybe I can even get the details of his work out of him."

"U-huh," Mia answered, still smiling. She waved and prepared to turn a sharp left into the next hallway. Lily looked at the floor as she went over everything she'd seen and heard that afternoon. The more data she collected from the beginning, the more she would have to evaluate him with in the future.

Mia had left her standing in the hall with her thoughts. A slightly bewildered look crossed her face as a realization struck her. Lily started suddenly and jogged over to the corner that Her Majesty had disappeared around.

"Hey Mia," she called, leaning into hallway, "what's his name?"


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I own nothing, and no one, that you recognize

Apparently, the best way to appreciate the size of the Royal Palace at Genovia was to try to keep track of someone in it. Lily was able to locate Andrew's cousin three or four times over the next few days, but each time she only came close enough to hear spurts of non-consequential chit-chat. Once, she stopped a foot away from him and Nicolas in a hallway and overheard No-Name joking at his own expense about his lack of riding prowess. A little later was the Kitchen Incident—Lily had walked into the palace kitchens after No-Name and seen him on the other side of the room, eyes on Brigeta, nodding and throwing encouraging remarks into the pauses of her running monologue.

She had even found him once when she wasn't trying. A rainy afternoon at the end of the week had sent her to a library in the west wing with her journal. No-Name had startled her by looking over the top of his red-velvet-chair and nodding before returning to the brown leather volume balanced on his knees.

The most successful encounter came after she had decided to back off. Mia had asked her to attend some heads-of-state mingling session, saying that having sincere, friendly faces around helped break up the monotony of diplomatic niceties.

So, Lily had found her best suit and a place on the fringes of the Palace ballroom. Muted candle light played off of cream wall paper and carved molding; extra over-head lighting cast a glare on the white marble floor. A violin quartet played something choppy and peppy that Lily had never heard before, undercutting the mummer of conversation and occasional refrains of stilted laughter. All part of Genovian hospitality.

Lily nursed a wineglass full of water and stood in semi-shadow on the edge of dance floor. Her attempts to avoid the bulk of the crowd had pushed her toward the handrail on the right side of the stairs. Andrew's and Nicolas' voices had induced her to look over; the fact that No-Name stood between them as part of a loose semi-circle made her to edge a little closer to her side of the staircase.

He, too, was holding an almost-full glass of ice water, watching Andrew and Nicolas with a glazed, slightly jaded expression, as the other two discussed something Lily couldn't quite hear. He saw an opportunity and backed away from them, moving with restrained determination toward a set of French doors at the back of the room. When Nicolas called after him, No-Name made a polite excuse to the effect of, "needing some air," nodded to his companions, and, promising he'd be back in a moment, made for the garden.

She may have decided to stop trying so hard, but she knew better than to ignore an opportunity when it dropped itself at her feet. Lily slipped behind Andrew and Nicolas, now re-engrossed in their conversation, and swerved around a waiter coming in from the kitchens on her way to the door.

It was almost warmer outside than it had been in-doors. The Jasmine was opening; the smell was too pervasive to ignore, even if it was too dark to tell one bush from another. It didn't take her long to locate No-Name, walking several paces in front of her. She stayed close enough to keep him in sight, but left almost a foot of space between them. She didn't want to lose him, but she didn't want to startle him, either.

They had left the open path and been walking under a covered stone archway for five minutes before Lily decided it was time to get a little closer. She was still questioning whether to get close enough to touch him when his voice made her sway to a halt.

"So, have you found what you're looking for yet?"


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

She could hear him smiling. Lily moved up to keep pace with him. Normally she wasn't a blusher, and at the moment, she was grateful that it was too dark for him to see the exception.

"I thought I noticed you following me," he continued. "Thank goodness; I thought I might just be paranoid."

"It's hard to get to know a person when they have their public face on," Lily answered simply. A light breeze cut through the heat and lifted a few strands of hair off of her shoulder.

"Very clever," he was smiling again, "not to mention true. So, why were you so interested in seeing the real me?"

"What do you want from my friend?" Lily voice was a little tight. She kept her eyes forward and her face expressionless. Neal thought a moment before answering. A strip of moon light passed over them, and Lily noticed that his arms were crossed over his stomach.

"Only to share with her something that I hope she will care to hear."

Lily raised an eyebrow at him, and then wondered if he could see it. "What do I look like to you?"

Neal looked down and smiled.

"A good friend." He answered.

Lily hadn't been prepared for this tack; it took her a few seconds to recover with a reserved, "Thank you." They turned a corner and moved a little closer to the ballroom windows; Neal allowed some silence to elapse before going on.

"We are both involved in humanitarian projects; do you think my motives are any more nefarious than yours?"

"Not necessarily," Lily answered matter-of-factly, "But I need to be sure. Certainly you understand."

"It's a pity that your loyalty forces you to be so suspicious."

"Yes, it is; but being the best friend of a princess has kind of required it of me." She watched him studying her in the light from the windows.

"Is that really all you are?" He asked

Before Lily could process what he had said, he moved on. "What do your pet organizations do?"

Lily felt herself getting her bearings as she shot back, "You first." He looked straight ahead, and she heard a cold, breathy laugh before he continued.

"We work with exploited women." The declaration was abrupt; the tone vaguely defiant. Lily felt a cold, sinking numbness in her stomach as the implications of his words sunk in. "Children, too." She tried to ignore the punch-like sensation in her chest as she searched for an appropriate answer. When looked back at her, and his eyes softened.

"Now do you see why I was less- than- eager to discuss the details of my work in polite company?" She wanted to say something, but words didn't feel like the right thing just then. Finally, she nodded and answered softly,

"I do understand-completely."

After a moment of thought, Neal went on, his voice a little bitter and lighter vat the same time. "Not that it wouldn't do some of those pickled fish good to hear about people worse off than themselves." Lily was trying not to laugh when he added. "Sorry," in a disgruntled tone.

"Don't be," she answered, feeling like she had just seen something she wasn't supposed to, but was unable to put a name on it. She smiled a little as a response came to her; if he could be blunt, she would be, too.

"I would think that you, of all people, would have the least room to talk about the blissful ignorance of wealth." He slowed to a stop, and she followed suite as he looked at her. She'd expected a smile in return, but instead, there was something hard in his eyes. She caught bitter amusement in his voice as he answered.

"Oh, really?"

The sound of a door opening from behind them distracted Lily before she could reply. Dressed in a red, floor-length gown, diamond earrings and a heavy- looking necklace, Mia leaned out the door and craned her neck, trying to see them.

"I thought I spotted you two out here," Lily could hear Mia's hostess-voice from there, but the warmth was sincere. "Why don't you come back in and join the party? The crowd's starting to thin—people are following you outside, in fact—and," she looked around briefly, then lowered her voice as they came nearer, "I'm starting to get sick of the empty cit-chat and diplomatic flattery. I'd love some real people to talk to."

Lily chuckled a little, and Neal looked at Mia with a knowing smile as he extended and elbow to her.

"We'd be happy to be of service, your Majesty," he looked to Lily for a confirming nod before escorting Mia back inside with Lily close behind them.


End file.
